Mexican Newspaper Staffer Gunned Down in His Garage

A newspaper employee died in the border state of Tamaulipas days after being critically injured in a shooting near his home. The journalist joins a growing number of Mexican news staffers murdered in 2019.

Local journalists in Ciudad Victoria condemned the murder of 44-year-old Juan Escamilla Bautista who was shot in his garage where he performed mechanic repairs part-time. Escamilla died four days after the attack. He was the printing manager at El Expreso in Ciudad Victoria.

Friends of the victim confirmed to Breitbart News that he would do auto mechanic work on the side to supplement his income. On the day of the attack, two gunmen riding on motorcycles pulled up to the garage and shot Escamilla five times before fleeing the area. Relatives called 911 and had him rushed to a local hospital where Escamilla clung to life for a little over four days as his condition worsened.

Law enforcement has not revealed a motive for the attack, nor which criminal organization is believed responsible. However, relatives told Breitbart News they suspect that the murder was a failed extortion attempt.

Year 2019 has been deadly for journalists and support staff in Mexico with at least seven others killed and a total of nine murdered since Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) took office in December 2018.

Rafael Urua Manriquez — The general director of Radio Kashana, a community station based in Santa Rosalia, Baja California, which reported on human rights, gender issues, alternative lifestyles, reproductive health, and ecology. He was murdered on January 21.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Border / Cartel Chronicles. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Border / Cartel Chronicles. He co-founded the Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.

“Francisco Morales” from the Cartel Chronicles project contributed to this report.